Lost and Found
by Dark King Rosemar
Summary: A future world were Sonic is a hopeless drunk! And what of the others? And who are these reptiles that are tailling Sonic? Read and find out, read my AN for why it's rated M. Just a bit of Angst too.
1. Echoes at last call

Rosemar: Welcome humans.

Alister: We're taking a vacation from the PPGs to write this.

Rosemar: We decided that it had been sitting on the back burner too long anyway.

Alister: So enjoy this riveting tale.

Rosemar: We own nothing in this story except the villains that will be making an appearance in this chapter. The other characters belong to Nintendo or are stock characters that no one owns.

Alister: This story is rated M so it is not for the faint of heart. Don't worry though; it contains no lemons, very brief lime, moderate swearing and alcohol references. Oh and this story for the most part is a flashback in movie style. This means that it begins in first-person and then switches to third-person once the flashback starts. In addition, the story refers to things that the flashbacked shouldn't know, like the thoughts of characters.

Both: And for all you fans out there: SONICU!

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**Lost and Found**

**Chapter 1: Echoes at last call**

It was midnight on a Saturday, well I guess technically it would be Sunday, but I digress. No matter what day it was, it was still late and I felt like closing shop and going to bed. It was easy throwing out the violent drunks and the ones that were too soused to move but I always found it hard to kick out the nice guys who just felt like a drink. This was just one of those nights I guess. Since happy hour had ended, the bar had been empty except for one guy. He had sat there for four hours and was just know finishing his third Scotch.

"Last call." I said to him. He slowly looked up at me from his empty glass and said:

"One more Scotch."

"O.K." I said. As I reached for the bottle, I began to have a conversation with him, I don't rightly know why I did but he sure didn't mind talking to me. "You know, I've seen just about everything there is to see. But in all the years that I have owned this bar, and in all the years I'll continue to own this bar I don't think that I will ever see anything quite like what happened last year. Wanna hear about it?"

"Can I keep drinking?" he asked.

"Sure." I didn't care if he drank me dry of Scotch, in this backwater town no one ever orders Scotch anyway.

"Well… It was about a year ago, maybe two by now and I was getting ready for the usually Friday crowd. I don't encourage drinking in the middle of the day but when a customer wants a drink then the customer is ganna get a drink. It was one o'clock and had two customers at my bar. One was a tourist just passing through and he was sitting in the corner all alone. He was a funny looking fellow to say the least. He was a dressed up in armor and had a gun on his holster. He was the kind of fellow that you don't get into a fight with. What's more was that he was a reptile, something we don't get a lot around here, all green and scaly. The other was regular. I had seen this one every day for the past year or so. He just sat there at the bar drowning his sorrows in Vodka. It was a real shame to see this broken man with his blue fur matted, especially since he used to be a world famous hero."

"Gimme another." He said. I could tell that he was completely wasted.

"I think you've had enough pal." I said and he slammed his fists on the bar, shouting:

"I'll tell you when I've had enough, now get me another Vodka you circus chimp!

"I will not stand for that kind of behavior in my establishment. Now get out of here before I call the cops or in your case animal control!" I yelled back at him and pointed at the door. He growled at me but reluctantly stood and staggered out the door. After he left I saw the reptile drop some money on the table and leave." (At this point, the story shifts to third-person perspective.)

Sonic staggered down the ally way muttering to himself.

"Damn barkeep, throwing me out like that. Fuck him." He had no idea that he was being followed.

Ten feet behind Sonic the reptile crept along. He moved lightly, careful not to make any sound that might alert his target to his presence. He had to bite his tongue to keep from chuckling at the hedgehog. _There is just no end to the amusement an inhibited mammal can bring._ He thought, remembering to bite his tongue. He had to remember that he was on a mission and discovery, and the resulting failure, was not an option.

Sonic wandered aimlessly for a mile or so before he came to an apartment complex. He climbed the stairs to his room and opened the door. He didn't bother locking it since he didn't have anything worth stealing anyway. The room was drab and under furnished. It had a bed, a table, a microwave, a lamp, a bathroom and not much else. Oddly enough, one piece of furniture seemed out of place. A safe sat in the corner by the one window. Sonic walked over to it, and reaching down, he pulled a key from his sock. He used the key to unlock the safe and reached into it.

The reptile waited patently by the window, cautiously stealing a glance every now and then. The blue hedgehog slowly pulled an object from the safe and clutched it in his hand. It was blue and was rather dazzling to the eye, most likely worth a fortune. However, the reptile knew that the gem was no mere bobble for it contained a power that was beyond most mortals' comprehensions. _The Chaos Emerald._ The reptile thought in amazement. _So that's what it looks like._

Sonic stared at the emerald. He was lost in thought for a moment but then he suddenly growled angrily and reared back. He aimed for the window and prepared to throw the emerald out of it. The reptile could hardly belief his good fortune. He would have to thank the gods for this because if he returned to base with the emerald he would surely be promoted. Unfortunately, for him, Sonic came to his senses and put the emerald back into the safe and locked it. He returned the key to his sock and fell into bed. He buried his head in the pillow and sobbed softly.

The reptile turned and jumped to the ground. He bounced off the cement to the top of a wall and somersaulted to the top of a nearby building. Once there he pulled from his side: a two-way radio. He pushed a button on it and put it to the side of his head.

"This is Scout-Unit Garronth. Do you copy?" He said in a gruff, hissing voice. There was some static and then a similarly hissing voice replied.

"This is the Battle-Star Nemesis. What is your report Garronth?"

"Retrieving the Chaos Emerald will be more difficult then anticipated. The target keeps it in a safe and carries it on his person at all times."

"What is the condition of the target?"

"He is resting, but even in deep sleep I do not think it would be wise to try and steal the key."

"You are correct, but for future reference you're not paid to think, so don't."

"Yes sir, please forgive me."

"Continue to monitor the target. Alert us if there is a change in his condition."

"Yes sir! Scout-Unit Garronth over and out." He lowered the radio and returned it to his armor pocket. He leaped back over to the apartment and glanced in the window. Inside Sonic was sound asleep on his bed. _This will be a long shift._ He thought as he sat down. He would be there for a while, why not make himself comfortable.

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Rosemar: How mysterious!

Alister: Reptiles rule.

Rosemar: Read and review humans.

Alister: Sonicu!


	2. O’ Captain, My Captain

Alister: Hi!

Rosemar: We own only: Zarxs, Xix, Gaxs and Garronth. Nothing else is in our possession.

Alister: Rosemar, you can be friendly you know, you don't have to say the disclaimer yet.

Rosemar: Why? No one reads the ANs anyway.

Alister: That's not true, someone does, I'm sure of it.

Rosemar: Whatever, Read and Review.

Alister: **Stop Being Unfriendly!**

Rosemar: **Stop Shouting At ME!**

Alister: (Rubs temples) Demons.

Rosemar: (sighs) Humans.

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**Lost and Found**

**Chapter 2: O' Captain, My Captain**

With it's halls of polished Crystal, five super warp-class engines, assorted armaments, and sleek design, the Battle-Star Nemesis would be any captain's dream; but, after twenty years, Xix was growing weary of this ship.

Xix strolled elegantly down the corridors. After two decades, he had the entire layout of the ship committed to memory. As he passed his soldiers by, they would salute him in the traditional Crystalonian fashion; by crossing their arms over their chests in an X pattern. Years ago, he would have been annoyed by the formality as it would be constant as he passed down the polished halls; but over the years, his crew had diminished to the point that it was now only one hundred and fifty and the ship was so large that he barely saw anyone, outside of the bridge. Xix came to the reinforced steel doors and, passing through them, entered the bridge.

"Good evening Captain. I trust you had a pleasant rest." One of his Tech crew-men asked.

"Skip the formalities. What's the report on the target?" Xix said as he sat down in his captain's chair. Immediately Tech-director Gaxs turned his reptilian head towards the Captain and said:

"Garronth reported in six hours ago, Captain, he said that the target has the Chaos Emerald locked in a safe and carries the key at all times."

"What is the restoration percentage?" Xix questioned with a hint of hope in his voice.

"Still forty-percent at a rate of three-percent per year, and that's _with_ all three Chaos Emeralds factored in. Gaxs responded. Xix sighed slightly at the let down but tried not to show it. Afterward, in his most commanding voice he said:

"And you are absolutely sure that this is the only Chaos Emerald in the sector."

"Affirmative." Gaxs replied. "The sensors show no other Emeralds for three parsects. (A parsect is a several thousand light-years distance.) To that, Xix silently cursed his luck. _Damn it. I need that Chaos Emerald. If only that fucking asteroid hadn't hit Mobius, but it could be worse. The Chaos Emeralds could have been destroyed instead, and then where would I be?_

"Captain?" Xix was brought back from his thoughts at the utterance of that.

"What is it?"

"The Commander is requesting that you meet him on deck five sir." Gaxs relayed.

"Very well, inform him that I will be there ASAP."

"Acknowledged."

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As Xix trotted down the halls, he recalled that, _the only thing I hate more then the predicament we're in is that I have to be in it with him._ Xix came to the turbo-lift and stepped it. _Level five _he thought and the lift moved upwards.

Xix stepped off the lift on deck five and said:

"Commander, I…"

"Ah, Xix, there you are." Commander Zarxs said, cutting the Captain off, without even turning around from looking out a port-hole. Xix hated it when he did that, he always seemed to know he was there, even without seeing him. He also hated being called by his first name, even by a superior officer.

"Commander, I have news from the bridge. Everything is proceeding as planned although the restoration process is moving slowly."

"I know." Zarxs responded in a cold tone. Zarxs was no different from any other Crystalon. He had green scales and a reptilian body. He wore the same armor as other solders but was decorated with symbols of authority. _What makes him so special?_ _Just because he's a Commander doesn't mean that I should have to listen to him on my own ship, I'm Captain here!_ Indeed Zarxs had special powers, he could tell you where a fly had landed when he swatted it and it fell six feet behind him. What was more was that he had a secret, Xix could not place it but he remembered the scent that Zarxs had on him. If he didn't know better, he would have sworn that Zarxs was a member of the royal family. Xix dismissed the idea; after all, the royal family had been dead for years. The voice of lower ranked crew-men interrupted his thoughts.

"Captain! Garronth has made contact! There has been a shift in the target's position!" The Ensign yelled as he raced down the hall. Unfortunately for him, as he came to a stop he skidded into the Captain and fell to the ground. Xix stumble from the impact but remained standing.

"You clumsy fool, watch were your going!" Xix yelled at the Ensign as he drew his laser-gun and aimed it at the Ensign on the ground. As he began to squeeze the trigger, the Commander saved the young one's life.

"Enough! We're shorthanded as it is Captain, we don't need another corpse."

"As you wish, Commander." Xix said as he slowly holstered his gun. As the two moved towards the lift that would take them to the bridge, Xix turned his head to the still grounded Ensign. He was shaking pretty badly and when he saw the Captain bare his teeth and mouth the words "Next time" he fainted.

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Rosemar: Oh, come on!

Alister:

Rosemar: I said I was sorry.

Alister: I'm not talking to you.

Rosemar: read and review.

Alister: Bye!

Rosemar: Please forgive me.

Alister: Maybe.


	3. Reunion

Rosemar: WELCOME TO CHAPTER 3!  Is that friendly enough for you?

Alister: That'll have to do.

Rosemar: We own only: Xix, Zarxs, Garronth, and Gaxs. We own nothing else. (And most importantly, we own no part what so ever of the song (cant think of the title) that we use in this chapter. We use only a small clip without music and collect no money on it so if you're looking to sue someone don't sue us.

Alister: It's a shame demons can't be more cheerful.

Rosemar: (if you'd let me blow up something up I'd be more cheerful.)

Alister: What was that?

Rosemar: Nothing!

Alister: Whatever, read and review.

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**Lost and Found**

**Chapter 3: Reunion **

Sonic woke up in his dim apartment. As he sat up, he immediately wished he hadn't.

"Oh, my head." He moaned as he came to the conclusion that he had a hangover. "Damn it! I drink too much." He thought he heard snickering but saw no one else in the room. He walked over to his window and peered out of it. "No one there." He walked to the bathroom and washed his face in the sink, after which he looked at his watch. "Almost nine." He had nowhere to go but he didn't fell like staying where he was so he strolled calmly out the door and down the steps.

Sonic wondered aimlessly for an hour our two before he realized he was being followed. He could feel it in the air, he knew that someone was right behind him, but no matter how many times he turned around he never saw anyone. _Whoever's following must be a master at tailing people, I know he's there but I can't prove it._

As Sonic stared intently down the alleyway, desperately searching for his pursuer, Garronth hid around the corner. His hearts were beating at a million miles an hour. _He wasn't this alert before, I had no idea alcohol could cause that much of a change in mental awareness._

Sonic strained his eyes trying to penetrate the darkness of the alley when, suddenly it hit him; he was the world's fastest hedgehog; no one could keep up with him. He turned and ran down the street; he hit mach 1 before he even reached the end of the alleyway.

Garronth just stood there blinking for a moment before he reached down and grabbed his radio.

"This is scout unit Garronth, do you copy?" he said into the radio.

"This is the Battle- Star Nemesis, what is your condition?" a voice said back through the radio.

"I followed the target to position: X: 375, Y: 59.3, Z: 1 when I lost him. The target is capable of speeds upward of two thousand miles per hour."

"Affirmative, did you place the tracer on him?"

"I did, can you lock on to him?"

"Current position: X: 353, Y: 60.2, Z: 1 at a rate of X: -22, Y/- 1, Z+0 per second

"Affirmative, I'm in pursuit." Garronth put the radio away and tore off down the street.

After a while Sonic had too stop and catch his breath.

"Whew, haven't…. (gasp) haven't done that in a while…" He rested for a moment and began to walk again. Whoever had been following him was long gone, unable to keep up with Sonic: the world's fastest hedgehog. As his breath returned to him and his heart slowed down, he realized where he was. It was the center of the town, where everything was located and the only place people frequented more then the pubs. On his left was an old store with a radio in the window. No matter what time of day or night sonic came by this place that radio was always on, it also always had the right song for his mood playing.

♪ "Sunny days seem to hurt the most, I wear the pain like a heavy coat…"♪

_Always the right song_ sonic thought.

♪ "it's not fair you died too young, like a story that had just begun, and death, tore the pages all away… God knows how I miss you, all the Hell that I been through, know, no one can take your place…"♪

That song took Sonic back, to almost five years ago. _Amy… why?_

As Sonic brushed away a tear, he let his mind go back to that day. _That day, we had been kissing, oh Amy. _

He and Amy sat beneath a tree in the middle of a meadow, kissing gently on the bright morning. _I had been such a fool._ The two had been dating for a few weeks since Sonic, as Amy had put it, had come to his senses about his feelings toward her. The two kissed gently, their tongues gently exploring the others mouth. _How sweet she had tasted, how wonderful her lips felt on mine, oh Amy!_ The moment had been interrupted by his watch beeping.

"Hold on a minute Amy." He said, breaking the kiss and turning to his watch. "Hey Tails, what up? After a second or two of static Tails' voice came over the line.

"Sonic… What's going on, where are you?"

"Calm down Tails! What's wrong?"

"What's wrong? WHAT"S WRONG! What's wrong is that I've been trying to contact you for almost an hour and you wouldn't answer."

Sonic smiled and looked at Amy. "Well, sorry Tails but I was a little busy."

Tails sighed on the other end. "Sonic, of all the idiotic things you've ever done, this one takes the cake. We need you Sonic, there's no time left."

"Tails stop beating around the bush and tell me what's what the Fuck is wrong."

"Sonic... An asteroid is headed toward Mobius. The planet won't survive the impact. We're evacuating people to space ships but wee need help."

Sonic was suddenly stricken with a call to action. "Don't worry Tails, I'm on my way." He turned off the channel and turned to Amy. "Come on Amy, let's go." She smiled at him and said:

"No, I'll only slow you down. You've got people to save, I'll be all right."

"Okay but don't miss the flight." _Why did I leave you?_ Sonic rushed away and in the course of two hours had everyone, including himself safely aboard the rockets.

Sonic strolled down the hallway admiring the design. When he bumped into Tails, who way busy in the cockpit, he said:

"Wow Tails, you've really outdone yourself, how did you manage to build this thing?" Tails kept making adjustment to the controls as he answered.

"I didn't, this one came courtesy of Dr. Eggman."

"WHAT!" Sonic yelled, mouth agape, "You actually trusted him not to blow us up!" _oh what a fool I was, worrying about things like that._

"We called a truce until we're out of danger. And don't worry, I doubt Eggaman would blow up a ship that he's on."

"I guess so." Sonic shrugged, if Eggman did try anything he could stop him. _But Eggaman was the least of my worries. _As Sonic sat down in his seat, a realization suddenly hit him: AMY! He ran around the ship at top speed looking for her, he couldn't find her. He ran to the cockpit to use the radio and find out which ship she was on. Someone was yelling to him, telling him to sit down but he wasn't listening. Amy was the only thing on his mind, nothing else mattered, not even the roar of the engines as they started up. He reached the cockpit; the room was red with warning lights, telling of the imminent collision between the asteroid and Mobius and of the swiftly approaching launch.

"Ta…" he immediately lost all knowledge of what he had been doing as he looked out the window. There, running across the meadow towards them, was Amy. He put his hands on the glass and whispered "Amy". She stumbled; she wasn't going to make it. Sonic gasped and turned around and there, serving as a power source were two Chaos Emeralds. 'That's it' he thought and snatched up the blue one, with the power of the Emerald he could save Amy.

"Sonic! What are you doing?" Tails called from the pilot's seat.

"No time, got to save Amy." He called back. Knuckles stopped him in the doorway.

"Sonic there's no time for this, the ship is taking off." The red echidna said as he blocked the door. Sonic knew it was no use to try and fight Knuckles, he was build for speed not power, which was what the echidna was: power. He collapsed and gazed out the widow. Amy looked up at him and he called to her.

"AMY!" _AMY! NO! _"NO!" Amy grew smaller in the window until Sonic could no longer see her. He watched through tearful eyes as the asteroid hit Mobius. The planet shuddered, cracked, and then, exploded. He weeped and pounded the ground with his fists. "I could have saved her Tails, I know I could have." _Why Amy? Why couldn't I save you?_

The ships landed and the people dispersed. Sonic took the blue Chaos Emerald and left the gang. He wandered until he found this place, a refuge for those that don't want to be found. This quiet little town on a quiet planet that circled a star so insignificant that it didn't appear on any of the star-charts.

♪ "Sunny days seem to hurt the most…"♪ as the song ended Sonic was brought back to reality. He shuddered at his own recollection_s_ and thought to himself: _Right, that's why I drink so much." _With that, he began to walk down the alley, completely unaware that as he had reminisced a certain lizard had caught up with him.

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Alister: How sad. (Wipes away tear)

Rosemar:…

Alister: Don't pretend you don't have emotions.

Rosemar: I'm not pretending.

Alister: …right….

Rosemar: Read and review.


	4. One More Time

Rosemar: (heavy metal intro)

Alister: (sigh) Here we go again.

Rosemar: I Want **YOU** to join the army of Darkness.

Alister: Rosemar.

Rosemar: With your help, we can conquer this world.

Alister: Rosemar!

Rosemar: Be all you can be in the dark army.

Alister: ROSEMAR!ENOUGH!

Rosemar: YOU said I could have an ad!

Alister: And you had one.

Rosemar: Fine, but if I don't get some new recruits soon I'm going to stop writing fics.

Fine with me\

Rosemar: Who said that?

/Me\

Alister: (bows)

Rosemar: Who are you?

/Your master\

Rosemar???

Alister: He's the dude sitting behind the keyboard that controls our every action.

Rosemar: So what, he's some kind of deity?

/From a certain perspective, Yes\

Rosemar: (bows)

Alister: We own only Gaxs, Xix Garronth and Zarxs.

Rosemar: Hey, wait! I didn't want to bow!

/To bad\

Alister: read and review.

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**Lost and Found**

**Chapter 4: One Last Time**

The servers are: the seven Chaos. Chaos is power. Power, to the one who unifies the chaos. It is said that that: Whosoever possesses all seven Chaos emeralds will have his wish granted.

In all of his life, Tails had never seen any good come from the Chaos emeralds, especially since they always seemed to be in Eggman's hands. For wherever the emeralds began to gather, trouble was never far behind.

Tails ruffled his nose at the scanner in his hands. Even though he had checked and double checked it twice, it was not broken. As hard as it was for him to believe; on this puny planet, there where: five chaos emeralds. Tails could account for the first two, he and Knuckles had brought one with them, and he suspected that Sonic had one as well. However, that still left three unaccounted for, and that, above all else, troubled the young fox.

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On the bridge of the Battle-Star Nemesis, the normally clean and polished floors ran blue with blood. Gaxs had been executed right there in front of everyone by captain Xix. The bridge crew shook and cowered behind there chairs as there captain put away his gun and coldly called for a Janitor with a mop. The captain showed neither remorse nor concern over his former tech officer. After all, it was his own stupidity that had killed him. Gaxs had sworn on his life that the scanner was working perfectly and that any Chaos emerald within three parsects of space would be found without error. Yet, he had no response for _why_ an emerald had just _appeared _on the planet without any forewarning. Gaxs had sworn on his life and Xix had upheld that promise.

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Sonic stood there in the alley staring at the stars. Silently pleading in vain, with whatever cosmic force that chose to listen, to let him be with Amy again, even if just for a moment. Sonic had contemplated suicide as a means of seeing Amy again but could never bring himself to go through with it. He had also wondered if the Chaos Emeralds could bring her back, but had dismissed that idea as well. After all, besides the one Tails had and the one in his own possession, the other five could be anywhere in the universe, or worse, they could have been destroyed with Mobius.

As Sonic wandered along a strange thing caught his eye. A tan fox was walking along on the other side of the street. He looked around, taking in all around him. Obviously a newcomer to this place; yet there was something different about him. He didn't have the demeanor that this town was accustomed to. He was neither a ruffian that looked like he had a price on his head, nor was he a sorrow trodden person who had seen the end to "the good old days". To Sonic, he appeared more like a tourist, but what right minded person would visit a place like this? As Sonic starred at the new comer, he saw that behind him, waving in the air, were **two tails**. Tails!

"Hey, Tails!" Sonic shouted. The fox turned to see who was calling to him. His eyes went wide and he yelled:

"Sonic! IS that you?"

"The one and only." The hedgehog called back. The pair raced across the street and grasped each others hands.

"Sonic, aw man, I can't believe it's you." Tails said excitedly. "God, it's been ages"

"I know, five years last week." Sonic replied, only half exited as Tails was. Tails looked Sonic in the face and said:

"How have been? ...you look awful."

"I know." Sonic had to admit, his live style had deterred to just above that of a homeless person's over the past five years. He hardly bathed of combed his hair and reeked of Alcohol.

"Sonic," Tails slowly continued, "I was so worried, I almost gave up on you being alive."

"Now come on Tails, you know I don't die that easily." Sonic said with a smirk. "I just, had a rough time after…"

"I know." Tails finished gloomily "we all did, she was important to us, but especially to you. Listen I just wanted to apologies for that day, no, both days. The day we left and the one after. Really, Sonic we weren't celebrating her death, we were celebrating OUR survival."

"I know Tails.' Sonic replied downheartedly "I was just so broken up about her I couldn't see that. I should be the one apologizing." The two old friends shared a forgiving hug and fought back tears that would only have made the reuniting moment worse.

"Well look what we have here." Knuckles said as he strolled towards the pair. "I really didn't expect to find you here Sonic."

"Hey Knux" Sonic called to him, he was starting to feel a lot better from seeing his friends again. "How are you?"

"Not good" the echidna responded "You tell him yet, Tails?"

"Tell me what?" Sonic inquired to the tan fox.

"About the scanner" Tails answered "The scanners working fine and it shows four other Chaos Emeralds besides mine on this planet." Sonic looked astounded _who could have the other four_ he wondered.

"I only have one" Sonic said contemplatively "Do you suppose, Eggaman has the others?"

"I don't think so "Knuckles answered "I don't think he has any need for them, last I heard he had made himself a mint designing military robots for Shino-Sans." Tails produced his handheld scanner and showed it to Sonic. (How'd he do that? Last time I checked he wasn't wearing pants. /Shhhh, Reality dosen't apply here\)

"See this dot here, that's us." Tails said wile pointing at the scanner. "This dot here, I guess it your Emerald and these three over here in sector 27 are the ones I told you about."

Around the corner, hidden in the darkness, Garronth herd every word. _SECTOR 27!_ Garronth raged in his head.

"Well whoever has the other Three we better go see what there collecting them for," Sonic said, pounding his fist into his hand.

"Know just wait a minute here" Knuckles bellowed "Aren't we jumping the gun here? It could be just some jewel collector who has no idea what the emeralds can do."

"Sorry Knux" Sonic said as he turned away "But I've learned the hard way that it's always better to think the worst might happen when it comes to these Emeralds."

As the three dashed off to do the heroic think one more, a fearful lizard cowardly spoke into his radio:

"This is Scout-Unit Garronth, do you copy?

"Affirmative, this is the Battle-Star Nemesis" the radio said with a crackle.

"The target has met up with two of his compatriots, one of which is in possession of both a Chaos Emerald and a Scanner whose sophistication and precision that far exceeds our own. The three are currently in route to sector 27. I am in pursuit."

"Error, Garronth did you say Sector **27**?"

"Affirmative. The target is in full knowledge of our three Chaos Emeralds and is on route to steal them."

"Acknowledged, I will alert the captain. Battle- Star Nemesis over and out."

As the Crystalonian scout put away his radio, another radio played in the distance. Sonic ears perked up and heard the song on that radio. He chuckled to himself _never fails_ he thought.

♪ "… So put me on a highway, show me a sign. And take it, to the limit, one more time… take it, to the limit, one…more…time…"♪

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Alister: Sorry for the lack of updates. School sucks.

Rosemar: But fear not we shall return soon.

Alister: Goodbye!

Rosemar: Be sure to read and review, as of know the anonymous blocker is off.


	5. Chains of Crystal

Rosemar: At last out triumphed return!

Alister: I told you not to take the left turn at Albuquerque.

Rosemar: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Alister: What's that music?

Rosemar: Huh?

/ I have stood here before inside the pouring rain, With the world turning circles running round my brain, I guess I'm always hoping that you'll end this reign But its my destiny to be the king of pain. \

Alister: What the dues?

Rosemar: What the DUES??

Alister: Never mind,

/You like it? I heard it the other day, made me think of this fic. So we put it in, yes?\

Rosemar: I would, if I planned to have it rain.

/But, you're the author, you can make it rain in the story if you just write: it was raining.\

Rosemar: I could, but I don't want to.

/Why not?\

Rosemar: The story is done, I just have to type it. No edit's will be allowed. End of conversation.

/ ?\

Rosemar: Deal with it.

Alister: Whoa!

Rosemar: We own only: Zarxs, Xix, Gaxs and Garronth. We own nothing else, especially not that song that you just heard.

* * *

**Lost and Found**

**Chapter 5: ****Chains of Crystal **

The bridge of the Battle-Star Nemesis was alive. Solders rushed about and helmsmen clicked away at their stations.

"Two kilometers and closing, sir!" One shouted over the rush. The time had come, the years of drilling and practicing, the Crystalonian training regimen drilled into the minds of all on board, it would all be finally brought to bare; the enemy was approaching.

" You have your orders men," Xix roared, " Squads one through three take the left flank, four though six, the left. Squad seven, eight and nine to the front. Squad ten: honor guard position. Let's move!"

"Yes Sir!" The mass answered in return. As the Crystalonians prepared to do battle, Captain Xix turned to the turbo-lift.

"Inform the Commander that I will personally lead the attack, he need not trouble himself." he hissed to a nearby ensign, his voice sounded like ice.

"At long last,…" Xix mumbled to himself as the lift doors closed. " … I will finally have what I seek,…" he clutched his fist tight and gazed at the ceiling. " … soon, all seven Chaos Emeralds will be mine. He-hahahahahaha" He closed his eyes and laughed manically as the lift began it's journey to the top deck.

* * *

Garronth rushed down the street, his twin hearts beat feverously in his chest. His every muscle strained and he fought for each breath. His cold reptilian blood ran hot from the strain and his vision had begun to blur, but still he could not keep up. Sonic and his allies raced along, slowly gaining more and more distance between them and their pursuer.

_ Even slowing to accommodate his friends, he is still faster then me._he thought in his pain riddled brain. Every nerve screamed, "Air, Air" but there was none. Despite their size, his two pound lungs (Fun fact: Human lungs only was 1 pound) could not provide his body with the air it needed. His muscles begged him to slow down, but he could not. He had to stay in pursuit, he had to. It was his duty as a Crystalonian,

_ Through fire, through ice, through pain and death. Crystalonians fight, one for all, many or none. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. _

Garronth recited the oath to Crystalon in his aching brain. It comforted him to some degree, but still his prey continued to move. The distance growing ever greater until they all but disappeared. Finally, weariness won out over determination and he stopped. Sonic and his friends were now out of sight. He reached for his radio.

"This is… (pant) Scout unit… (pant) Garronth… (pant) do you copy? (pant)" He struggled to say into the machine. It crackled and a voice hissed back:

"This is the Battle-Star Nemesis, what is your report?"

" I have pursued the target… (pant) to one kilometer range of the ship… (pant) but he is… (pant) too fast, I deeply apologize… (pant) he has escaped, I have failed." He mournfully breathed into the radio.

"Affirmative, we are aware of the target's heading and are prepared for his arrival. Return to the ship but do not pursue the target, repeat: do not pursue. The Captain has expressed his desire to speak with you upon your arrival. Battle-Star Nemesis out." There was a click as the line went dead. Garronth's eyes widened as he lowered the radio to his holster.

"It's over…" He whispered to himself. " I'll be demoted for sure, if not killed outright…" His life began to flash before his eyes. " I failed, and now, the Captain wants to see me?" Garronthhad heard about what Captain Xix did with failures. "He'll shove me out the airlock, just like Mexta…" The reptile suddenly felt very empty inside, the whole universe no longer seemed to hold any hope in it. He stood there for a long time before he finally began to march home. If he was to die, he would die as a Crystalonian, with honor, pride and dignity.

* * *

Sonic rushed down the road. Stores, lights, signs, all went passed in a blur. The wind blew through his quills. He had missed this, the wind, the rush, it made him feel alive, for the first time in five years.

" One kilometer and closing." Tails called over the rushing wind.

"Any idea what we're looking for? A house? An ally? What?" Knuckles shouted to his compatriots.

"Not sure, the scanner only shows a large open area around the Emeralds." Tails replied. Knuckles became aware that once again, like always, they were rushing blindly towered the enemy.

"Just a thought, what if whoever has the Emeralds knows we're coming and is waiting for us?" Knuckles inquired. The young fox blinked, he hadn't thought of that. As he began to say something, Sonic answered for him:

"Even if they are waiting, it won't matter, I can handle anything." Sonic said with that same smile that Tails remembered from all those years ago. "Just leave it to me." With that the three rushed headlong into an open clearing. It may haveat one time been a park but since then the trees had died and disappeared and the grass struggled to remain alivein places. Brown dirt was predominant in the area that the heroes could see, but that area was small, barely five percent. Because the rest of the field was occupied by one, large starship.

"Whoa…" Tails gasped, he had never seen a ship like this. Nearly a kilometer long and half as much wide. It was as tall as a four story building and had five massive engines on the back. The sides showed the sign's of at least six Quantum burst laser cannons each. The round pointed nose boasted a long horizontal view port the uppermost deck had round portholes along the sides. The ship rested on eight spider like supports and had two landing bays open, one on either side. As he gazed a horde of lizard men in armor appeared down the stairs on the landing bays. The sleek viridian armor shone in the moonlight as the marched in step and took positions. Thirty on the left, thirty on the right, and thirty in the center. They were surrounded.

" How did I know this was going to happen?" Knuckles whispered. Sonic glanced around. All ninety lizards had laser riffles aimed at him. His eyes drifted upward in time to see a new group approaching. Ten new lizards lead by another. The one out front was wearing Gold armor, clearly the leader.

Xix glanced down, he saw Sonic, Knuckles and Tails he glanced at his flanks and at the only exit. There was no escape. Fast as he was, the blue hedgehog would be cut to ribbons in an instant if he moved. Twenty years of military strategy had served him well, and so had the Shasmer maneuver.

" So we meet at last, Sonic the hedgehog. I see you brought Tails and Knuckles with you. I must say your dossier was

mis-informative, your much faster then it had me believe." Xix said with a cold smile.

Sonic was dumbfounded, who was this guy?

"You seem to know a lot about me, just who are you and why are you so interested in me?."

"Me, I'm just a stranger seeking information, and my information has lead me to you, because you have something I desire: The Chaos Emerald." Xix called back.

"I knew it." Knuckles muttered to himself and then he shouted to the gold armored lizard. " Those Emeralds are dangerous, you don't know what they can do. So just give us the three you have before someone gets hurt." Knuckles voice told that he was not threatening him. Even so, Xix became very annoyed.

"Who are you to order me? Listen well! I am Xix, Captain of the Battle-Star Nemesis, pride of the Crystalonian Navy. You will hand over your Chaos Emeralds or been killed."

Sonic glared at him and then at Tails.

"Ready?" He asked.

"Of course." Tails responded.

"Go!" Sonic yelled and with that the three broke and dashed at the enemies around them. Sonic was a blur, Tails took to the air, and knuckles was on the right flank in a flash.

"Now, shoot to disable!" Xix called from his perch. All at once the air was alive with green energy beams. The air hummed with energy as each shoot missed and struck the ground. The enemies was just too fast. Knuckles growled and punched on reptile in the stomach, bam, and he was down. Tails darted between solders, bounding into the air and landing kicks square into faces. Sonic dashed knocking down anyone in his way. He did not stop, he had but one objective. He made contact with the ships hull and ran up the side of it. He landed on the top deck and leaped at Xix aiming to finish the fight.

"Shoot him!" Xix cried as the blue blur rushed at him. Shots were fired and then everything seemed to slow down.

Sonic flew through the air. He twisted his body effortlessly to dodge the incoming fire. His foot always aimed at Xix's face. Two feet left and then Xix remembered his own gun. One foot, Xix grabbed it and aimed. Six inches, he fired. The beam raced through the air, point blank. The report rank loud and clear with an electric Bzzzzapp! Sonic fell backward and lay still on the deck.

"Sonic!" Tails shouted as he saw, but as he did a bright green bolt struck him in the jaw. He felt his mouth go numb from electric pain. Three more shots struck him and he fell to the ground.

Knuckles saw both occurrences and was determined not to make the same mistake. He lifted two solders off the ground in chock holds but numbers were against him. As he lifted them into the air three lasers struck him in the chest, knocking his breath from his body. He dropped his victims and was then set upon by a storm of energy. Ten, twenty, thirty, shoots, he felt his body become numb and unresponsive. Finally he fell to the ground and lay still.

Xix strode over to the fallen hedgehog, his chest gently rising from breath. Xix reached down a inserted a finger into Sonic's sock and removed a key. He stood and called down to his men.

"Excellent work, you have made Crystalon proud."

"Sir!" A solder far below called to him. " I have found the enemies' scanner and Chaos Emerald." The solder held up both, the latter shone green in the moonlight, and to Xix it was the most wonderful thing in the world.

"Good work. Now take the scanner to bridge and have them patch it through our systems. Then I want the Emerald taken to the Crystal chamber, be sure the Tech's get it. Now, I want these worms taken to the brig. Now!" Xix shouted infuriated at the end that his orders were taking longer to say then he wanted them to be done. His men scrambled and his honor guard dragged Sonic's body away.

Xix smiled to himself and entered the turbo-lift. _Bridge _he thought and the lift moved downward.

As Xix stepped of the lift Garronth approached him. He crossed his chest with his arms and bowed.

"Please sir forgive me." he whimpered.

"Forgive you" For what?" Xix queried. Garronth was perplexed. He looked at his captain and whimpered:

"I failed you, I let the target escape."

"Nonsense." Xix said with a smile, he was in a very good mood. "You provided us with the Intel we needed to capture the target and a Chaos Emerald, without you the target would have surprised us and taken our Emeralds, you are a hero to Crystalonians."

"A hero?" Garronth said, his hope rising.

"Yes, know I want you to take this and go retrieve the target's Chaos Emerald and then report back here." Xix calmly ordered.

"Yes sir!" Garronth replied enthusiastically, taking the key, and as exhausted as he was, he sprinted down the hallway and out the landing bay.

Xix turned to his helmsmen.

"As soon as Garronth is back on board I want us in the air, make preparations for launch." Xix ordered and the crew made themselves busy with their new task.

Amid the typing and the sounds of power up, Xix smiled, for once everything was going his way.

_Soon, all I have ever hoped for will be mine, soon I will have what I desire. All the pieces are coming together and there are only two Chaos Emeralds left between me and my destiny. _

* * *

Alister: That was….

Rosemar: Invigorating!

/ Overly simplistic?\

Alister: Evil, the bad guys just won!

Rosemar: Yeh Evil!

/Don't worry Alister, it's not the end yet\

Alister: Oh, good.

Rosemar: That means I have more work to do.

Alister: Yeh, so I guess we had better get going.

Rosemar: Goodbye humans.

Alister: Please Read and review!

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/Wait! Before you go I have one thing to say: Many of our character's names are easy to pronounce, ( Gaxs, Garronth, Zarxs. ) but the exception is Xix, I'm wondering, how are you pronouncing his name? Please send a review and include in it how you pronounce Xix. I'll tell you how I intended it to be pronounced next chapter and if you've been saying it the same way I have I'll congratulate you by name in the next chapter AN. So please review! \


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